Milpitas calendar for the April 25 issue

Posted:
04/24/2014 05:10:51 PM PDT

Updated:
04/24/2014 05:10:52 PM PDT

Click photo to enlarge

The Golden Hills Art Association will hold its next meeting on Thursday, May 1 at 7 p.m. in the Community Room of the Milpitas Police
Department. Demonstrator for the evening will be Jason McHenry discussing his project "One Thousand Thousand," which is an ongoing and frequently
collaborative effort to produce an edition of 1 million handmade original works on paper.

Milpitas Little League is having a Goodwill Drive on Saturday, April 26 from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. at the Milpitas Sports Complex parking lot, 1325 E. Calaveras Blvd. Help the Little League by bringing items you would like to donate to fill up a Goodwill truck. If the truck gets filled, Goodwill will donate $1,500 to the league. Bring clothes, books, shoes, household items, home electronics under 50 pounds and e-waste. Tax receipts will be supplied for donations.

Ohlone marshes

How did the people who lived here 10,000 years ago travel in the water world that was once San Francisco Bay? By boat, of course. Join for a short walk to view the raw materials used by Ohlones in boatmaking, on Sunday, April 27 from 10:30 a.m.-12 p.m. Afterward, use natural materials to make small replicas of Ohlone boats to take home. Very appropriate for children ages 8 and up, who are accompanied by an interested adult participant. The program will be led by Laura Mello and Aja Yee. For more information and to reserve a spot, call (408) 262-5513, extension 104.

ESL assistance

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Speak more English, learn new words and make many friends as a member of Milpitas Public Library's ESL Conversation Club. Members of this free club meet 10-11 a.m. every Friday in the conference room on site at 160 N. Main St. This club works to improve listening and speaking skills for all levels of English language learners. Topics include American culture, life skills and current events. For more information, call the library at (408) 262-1171, extension 3616.

Guided meditation

Come for a free guided meditation session every Sunday from 3-5 p.m., "Live life with joy, purpose and confidence." In these sessions you will learn powerful but simple breathing techniques to eliminate stress and experience a guided meditation. This workshop, held at the Cracolice Building, 540 S. Abel St., offers an opportunity to learn about the nature of the mind and the keys to deal with stress in everyday life. For more information or to confirm your seat in the workshop, call Usha Ara at (408) 520-1674.

NEXT WEEK

Kindergarten parent workshop

The Milpitas Unified School District will be hosting a free parent workshop entitled "Moving up to Kindergarten: Preparing Your Child for Kindergarten and Transitional Kindergarten" on Monday, April 28 from 6:30-8:30 p.m. in Milpitas Public Library's Auditorium, 160 N. Main St. This workshop is intended for parents of 4 and 5 year olds entering kindergarten or transitional kindergarten in 2014. A panel presentation followed by a question and answer session will provide information on the various aspects of kindergarten readiness. Topics will include: Why it is important to read to and interact with your child, health and wellness, and immunizations your child will need, the developmental assets framework, the difference between transitional and traditional kindergarten and more.

The panel of experts features: Dr. Harpreet K. Hansra, pediatrician with Kaiser Permanente, Anne Ehresman, executive director of Project Cornerstone, Erika Hernandez, literacy support specialist with Milpitas Unified, Liz Medina, elementary school parent in Milpitas Unified and Susan VonTersch, kindergarten teacher with Milpitas Unified. In addition, a First Five and Health Trust resource tables will be available as will free childcare for toilet trained children ages 3 years old and up (with a prior reservation).

To reserve a child care space or for more information about the workshop, contact Linda Lambert, family literacy coordinator, at (408) 635-2668, extension 1062. If you are interested in learning more about transitioning to kindergarten in general, visit the Milpitas Unified School District's moving up website: musd-ca.schoolloop.com/movingup.

Homebuyer assistance

The Milpitas Public Library and Housing Trust Silicon Valley invite you to attend an informational workshop to learn about the Housing Trust's Homebuyer Assistance programs on Tuesday, April 29 at 7 p.m.

If you are an individual earning up to $88,600 or a family of four earning up to $126,600 you may qualify for one of three homebuyer assistance loan programs that are available to first-time homebuyers. This free lecture will be held in the library's auditorium, 160 N. Main St., and reservations are not required. For more information, call (408) 262-1171, extension 3616.

Ballroom dancing

Ballroom dancing has returned to the library. Every Tuesday through May 20, from 1:30-3:30 p.m. in the afternoon, the Milpitas Public Library and the Milpitas Chinese Evergreen Club will again host a series of ballroom dancing sessions in the library's auditorium. There are no lessons involved but these popular get-togethers offer plenty of music and an opportunity to learn from each other. Dancing is good exercise as well as a chance to meet new people and have fun. Participation is free and no registration is required. The library is located at 160 N. Main St.

MAY AND BEYOND

Golden Hills meeting

The Golden Hills Art Association will host a meeting on Thursday, May 1 at 7 p.m. in the Community Room of the Milpitas Police Department, 1275 N. Milpitas Blvd.

Demonstrator for the evening will be Jason McHenry, speaking about his project "One Thousand Thousand" which is an ongoing and frequently collaborative effort to produce an edition of 1 million hand-made, original works on paper. The idea is simply to produce 1 million, uniformly-sized, original mixed-media works. The origin of this project began in about 1988 or so as a simple creative exercise in visual art and was inspired in significant part by the Fluxus artists. A series of little paintings approximately 5.5 by 7 inches, done often and in large numbers in order to experiment with various techniques, mediums and styles.

Eventually, after amassing a few hundred of these pieces the idea of making a much larger series of work came to mind and over the next few years the project soon evolved into its current form. In early 2010, artist McHenry and Christopher Dyer renewed their commitment to this project and recently reached the neighborhood of about 328,500 pieces.

The finished pieces are all unique, each produced by hand in mixed media with a wide range of techniques using watercolor, acrylics, pen, pencil and other media. They are then slid into crystal clear protective sleeves or little frames. They are shown in stacks or on walls at art shows, galleries and festivals.

McHenry will be showing off some of his pieces and bringing materials for the group to experiment with on their own. The public is invited to come, meet McHenry and make one of the "One Thousand Thousand."

Special needs respite

Children with special needs and their siblings are welcome to come to the Mount Olive Ministries, 1989 E. Calaveras Blvd., for an afternoon of free fun on Saturday, May 3 from 1-4:30 p.m. to give parents an afternoon off. Take a break, get away, do some shopping and breathe while your children play games, make crafts and have fun with music and snacks.

All activities will be led by trained staff and volunteers. Children must be pre-registered because there is limited space. Children with food allergies should bring a snack with them. For more information, call Tom Taylor (408) 510-4623 or e-mail him at ttaylor5209@yahoo.com.

Come join the Friends of the Milpitas Library for a one-day Children's Book Sale Saturday, May 3 from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. in Milpitas Public Library's Study Room A, 160 N. Main St. The Friends will be selling children's books for 50 cents each and children's CDs, DVDs, and audio books for $1 each. Cash and checks welcomed; credit cards not accepted. Visit the Friends of the Milpitas Library at milpitasfol.org

Montessori open house

Milpitas Montessori, 150 Yosemite Drive, will be hosting an open house on Saturday, May 3 from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Milpitas Montessori offers a one-week trial and free registration.

Community Breakfast

Milpitas Unified School District will put an eight-year extension of the Measure B parcel tax before voters in the June 2014 Gubernatorial Primary Election. Boardmember Danny Lau will explain the purpose of renewing the annual $84 parcel tax, which will provide a stable stream of revenue to maintain current programs, attract educators and to prepare students for college and 21st century careers.

The breakfast, a 50-year old tradition in Milpitas, is sponsored by the Sunnyhills United Methodist Church and the Sunnyhills Neighborhood Association. Breakfast is free (donations requested). All Milpitas residents and business owners are invited to attend and participate. Breakfasts run from 8-9:30 a.m. at Jones Hall, Sunnyhills United Methodist Church, 355 Dixon Road (across from Weller school playground). The Milpitas Community Breakfast occurs the first (non-holiday) Saturday of the month except July and August. The next breakfast will be June 7. For more information, call 263-8942.

Financial planning

Who doesn't need a helping hand with financial planning? This series of free evening workshops at the Milpitas Public Library can help you focus on financial topics that you'd like to understand better or have not considered before. The presenter is Michael Caulkins, a certified financial planner and member of the Financial Planning Association of Silicon Valley. The Financial Planning Association is a non-profit organization with the mission of helping consumers make intelligent financial decisions to achieve their life goals.

May 7: Social Security and How to Optimize Benefits

All programs begin at 7 p.m. and will be held in the library auditorium. The first 25 people at each program will receive free tote bags. The Milpitas library is located at 160 N. Main St. For more information, call (408) 262-1171, extension 3616.

Football-cheer

Milpitas Knights PAL youth football and cheer sign-ups for the 2014 season will be open for boys and girls ages 6 to 14 years old at Round Table Pizza, 1271 E. Calaveras Blvd. from 6-8 p.m. on May 7, May 21, June 4 and June 18. Space is limited. Cheer registration is $60 per child, with the cheer uniform and shoe costing an additional $200 per child. Mighty Mites registration is $195 and football registration is $320.

Oakland A's game

Join the Milpitas Community Education Endowment on Saturday, May 10, for a night of Oakland A's baseball. Also, this is a fireworks night, so enjoy a night of baseball and fireworks. Watch the A's take on the Washington Nationals at Oakland Coliseum. A portion of each ticket sold will benefit the Milpitas Community Educational Endowment. For more information and online ordering, visit mceefoundation.weebly.com/mcee-baseball.html or contact Robert Jung, (408) 890-7499, or via e-mail at robert.jung@milpitaspta.net. Tickets are $22 each for Section 233. Tickets are first come, first served and are limited.

PAL sign-ups

Milpitas PAL soccer sign-ups for the fall season will take place May 10, May 31, June 14, June 28, July 12 and July 26 at Round Table Pizza, 1271 E. Calaveras Blvd. from 12-3 p.m. Visit milpitaspalsoccer.com for more information.

Wildcat Scramble

John Sinnott Elementary School will be hosting the Wildcat Scramble Golf Tournament at Summitpointe Golf Course on May 17 at 1 p.m. All profits go to academic intervention programs, updating technology and innovative curriculum for students.

The cost for a day of golfing and dinner per person is $130. The dinner only option is $30. All checks should be made payable to Milpitas Unified School District with "Wildcat Scramble" in the memo space. For more information, call (408) 635-2674, extension 1911.

Veteran dental event

Milpitas Smile Design's Dr. Puneet Sandhu will be providing her services and facility, 414 S. Main St., free of charge to military veterans in the community on June 7. A screening event will be held on May 24 from 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

The event is limited to the first 50 veterans who schedule an appointment by calling (408) 934-0693. Veterans will be screened on May 24 to evaluate their dental needs and if qualified will receive treatment on June 7. Image Dental lab and various dental companies like Patterson Dental will be providing dental supplies and materials for the event. Even veterans who do not qualify will have the opportunity to get needed dental treatment at a much reduced rate on other scheduled dates.

International BBQ & Festival

Milpitas Chamber of Commerce and the City of Milpitas will present a free International BBQ and Festival on May 31 from 10 a.m.-8 p.m. and on June 1 from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. on South Milpitas Boulevard. Food vendors and business row participants are still wanted. For more information, call the chamber at (408) 262-2613.